Just a Push
by HarleyD
Summary: Harper is always gettin the short end of things and Tyr really is quite protective of him. When those protective skills are needed the boys realize that they need just a push. SLASH
1. Devon

Title: Just a Push

Pairing: Harper/Tyr

Warnings: Slash, Devon's threats

Summary: Tyr saves Harper. Harper wants Tyr. Harper always gets what he wants.

He was working in the engines, just like he always did. There was a slight difference though, as much as he hated to admit it, Harper knew he was kind of hiding himself. Just a week ago, by a random chance the Andromeda had stumbled across another survivor of Tyr's pride and not just any survivor; it was a very distant cousin of Tyr's named Devon. The boy was 16 years old, although his development, both physical and mental, was more like that of a 19-year-old human. They had taken him on to the ship, Beka and Dylan overjoyed to help Tyr, but Harper felt otherwise. The Nietzschean was young but aggressive, already causing Harper to have to back down to minor threats two or three times.

So now the last couple days he had been hiding out whenever he could, avoiding the kid. He had engaged privacy mode in the workroom, but it wasn't until he heard the door open that he realized he hadn't locked it up. He sighed, half under the machine, the steps were light and he assumed it was Beka. "I'm real busy right now Beka, I'll be done in a little while."

He expected to get a lecture, but instead someone grabbed his legs and yanked him out from under the machine. He looked up, ready to curse someone to hell and back only to find himself looking at Devon. The smile on his face was enough to make Harper's fight or flight response trigger. Before the boy could do anything Harper screamed at the top of his lungs for Andromeda, only to remember that privacy mode was engaged.

The boy smiled again and Harper tried to scramble out from under him but he grabbed both of Harper's upper arms and pulled him to his feet and then shoved him against the wall. He pressed tightly against Harper, pressing him against the hard surface.

Harper fought as hard as he could. A fist actually connected and then Harper froze as it caused Devon to growl fiercely. Suddenly he was spun around and shoved back against the wall. His hands were held behind his back, Devon's one hand easily holding both wrists together and pulled up at an angle that was slightly painful. When Devon pressed against him he had to swallow down the panic at the hardness pressing against his ass. No, no, no!

Harper's mind spun, this couldn't be happening, this didn't happen to him anymore. He didn't get abused anymore, he didn't get forced into anything anymore, but the body pressing up against his told him different. The worst part was that there was nothing he could do. The Nietzschean was easily holding him, not even breaking a sweat.

Suddenly the other hand was around his waist, sliding up his shirt and teeth bit down on the juncture between his neck and his shoulder. The bite hurt, but what worried him more was the hand in his shirt. He tried to say something but then the hand was in his hair and roughly shoved his face into the wall, surely making a bruise. "Quiet kludge." He didn't open his mouth again; too afraid he would be hit. The hand holding his arms tightened, causing pain to shoot through his body. He whimpered loudly, flinching as he expected a hit but the Uber seemed to enjoy the whimpering sound, repeating the motion in order to get the sound again. The hand was under his shirt again, splaying across his stomach. His stomach muscles clenched, pulling away from the touch of the Uber.

The hardness was pressing hard against him and he fought back tears. He wouldn't let the Nietzschean see him cry. The hand slowly slid down, starting to play with the band of his pants. He shut his eyes and prayed it would be over soon.

Suddenly there was an unmistakable sound of a growl and then, "Devon!"

The emotions ran through Harper faster than he could control. Relief, fear, and of course, humiliation. He was after all in the process of being raped by a child. He heard Tyr stalk over and felt Devon tense in fear.

"Get your hands off of him Devon." Harper felt the hands on him tighten for a few seconds and then they were gone. He let out the breath he had been holding. He pressed both palms against the wall and took a deep breathe before turning around to watch the scene in front of him, wrapping his arms around his own chest, hugging himself. He knew there were tear tracks down his face but there was no way to hide it anyways.

Devon straightened his back, "What? He's just a kludge, I can take him if I want to." Harper was terrified, what if Tyr agreed with him; he wouldn't leave him here, would he?

Tyr's words were a growl, "Not on this ship child."

The boy hesitated and then suddenly let a somewhat innocent smile cross his face, "He wanted me to do it."

Harper's mouth dropped open, "Tyr, I didn't-"

"Hush boy." The venom in the words efficiently silenced Harper. Harper winced, even he could tell how angry Tyr was, and suddenly he realized that Tyr might believe Devon over him. Tyr stalked forward, putting them all with in a foot of each other. Harper hugged himself tighter, fearing that the anger in Tyr's face was going to be placed on him. Tyr must have sensed the sudden increase of fear because he glanced at Harper before gently touching his shoulder, "I know you didn't, boy."

Devon was outraged, "You believe a kludge over me?"

"Yes, I believe _Harper _over you." He stressed the name and then he growled and grabbed Devon by the back of the neck, turning them to both face Harper. He pointed to Harper, "Tell me Devon, what do you sense off of him?"

He looked at Harper and his eyes took on that of a lazy predator and a sneer curved his lip, "Fear."

Tyr watched as the one word caused Harper to look away, and made a mental note to boost his confidence somehow later, now he had other problems though. "You have much to learn child. What don't you sense off of him?" The boy looked at him and confusion crossed his face, obviously he didn't get it. He hit the boy hard across the face, quick enough that Devon didn't see it coming. "Lust boy, there is no lust coming from him, no desire. Just fear, not something you would expect to come from a man asking another to screw him, huh?" He was going to dismiss the boy then but instead gave him a glare that told him not to move. He looked to Harper.

"Are you okay?"

He tried to give Tyr a cocky grin but couldn't do it. Instead he nodded weakly, "Yeah, I think." Before he could stop the movement Tyr traced the bruise along Harper's cheek, a frown crossing his face before he lightly touched the bite mark on his shoulder. He looked up and gave Harper a questioning look.

He shook his head, "No other marks."

Satisfied he turned to Devon, "Listen boy, if I ever hear of you laying a hand on Harper against his will again, I'll kill you myself. Now go."

Devon nodded, there was no mistaking the seriousness in the voice, he glanced at the boy huddled against the wall but was smart enough to know that he was officially off limits. He headed out quickly.


	2. Tyr

As soon as Devon was gone Harper found he couldn't keep it in any longer. Uncaring that Tyr was still there he slipped down to the floor and sobbed into his arms.

He was surprised when he felt Tyr pull him to his feet. "Boy, boy, hey, look at me." Harper forced himself to look up at Tyr. Tyr was checking the bruise on his face more carefully and then he checked the bite again and Harper realized that he was still reeling with anger.

He looked up to Tyr, his eyes pleading, "I swear I didn't provoke him or anything Tyr, I- I haven't even been near him, I was actually hiding from, er, avoiding him in here."

Tyr realized why he began to panic and touched his cheek gently, "I know, I wasn't worried about that. I know you didn't provoke him. By the way he's really not that-well anyways, he won't touch you again, I promise. That isn't what's making me angry, it's that he marked you."

Harper raised his eyebrows, "The bruise? That's cause I was talking and he shoved me against the wall."

Tyr almost smiled at the naivety, but held back. "No, the bite, he was marking you as his, kinda."

Harper shrugged, "It'll fade in a few days, besides I can get Trance to take care of it."

Tyr frowned slightly, and decided that he wasn't even going to try to explain what was wrong to Harper, there was no reason to put that kind of pressure on him.

Harper gave him a half grin and tilted his head back and to the side, "Oh, go ahead, mark over it, I don't care."

Tyr's head jerked back, how did Harper know that? After a few seconds pause Harper looked at him, and gave him a half-hearted smile. "What? You think being a kludge I can't figure out anything? You claimed me, unofficially of course, as 'yours' for lack of a better word, and it irks you that another Nietzschean marked me. I know you can negate the meaning of it by biting over it, kind of reclaiming, so go ahead." As Tyr continued to look at him with a startled look he gave him a look that was half joking, half something like regret. "What, shocked I know? Think as a kludge on Earth I was never claimed? Of course it was usually against my will, but still. Please, over mark it, I don't want his on me."

Tyr finally nodded and moved one hand into Harper's hair to pull his head back and to the side, holding it there. The other hand was pressed against Harper's back, holding him still. He caught his eyes, "Its gonna hurt."

"I know." Tyr leaned forward, the previous bite wasn't that deep, it hadn't even broken the skin, but to go over it he would have to. He glanced at Harper one more time before he continued.

Harper tried to keep his muscles from tensing; it would only hurt more. The hand on his back began to move in slow soothing circles, trying to relax him. He tried not to explore the exact reason he wanted Tyr to mark him, it was something he wasn't sure he wanted to be truthful about it. He felt the teeth on his shoulder bite down and he whimpered at the pain, but he also knew all the shivers going through him weren't just because of pain.

Tyr bit down hard enough to cover the previous mark and that was when he noticed the scent coming off the small human and he felt his body react slightly. There was fear and anger but under that now was the scent of desire. Tyr paused a moment and then pulled back slightly to gently lick at the wound and the lust coming from the boy rocketed.

Tyr grinned and used the hand on the boy's back to pull him forward so their bodies were flush and continued to lick at the bite under the pretense of making sure it healed right.

Harper gritted his teeth. So what if he was attracted to Tyr, big deal. He could handle this without making a fool of himself. Then he was pulled closer and he was flush against the larger man and his breath caught in his throat. Tyr was slowly backing him up and the hand moved from his back as he was pressed against the wall. The hand in his hair loosened but didn't leave, allowing Harper to move his head.

Almost faster than Tyr could follow the boy's lips were on his. He kissed back easily as he tried to temper the boy's eagerness. He allowed the contact for a few more moments and then pulled back. While normally he would be fine to continue this new development, there was something off with Harper's scent. He looked into the boy's eyes and saw that they were slightly unfocused and Tyr instantly knew that it wouldn't be fair for him to take advantage of the boy like this. The boy was shaken and was reaching out, responding to the almost rape.

"Harper, no, stop." Harper whimpered and tried to kiss him again but the larger man easily held him and he whimpered again.

"But-but Tyr, I can tell you like it, I mean, don't you want me, I thought that maybe, maybe you wanted me, you, you marked me and I just thought." The words ran together and were tinged with desperation. Before Tyr could say anything the boy dropped to his knees, running his tongue over the bulge visible through Tyr's leather pants. He sucked in a quick gasp at the pressure on his erection, but he couldn't do this, not now when the boy was vulnerable. He gripped the boy's arms and dragged him to his feet. Harper looked at him unhappy, hurt. "You don't want me?"

Tyr smiled softly, "Harper, I do want you." He pressed his hips against the other's, leaving no doubt in Harper's mind what Tyr wanted. "But I'm not going to take what I want from you when you are like this. This is a response to almost getting raped. Now how about I help you get back to your quarters and you can get some sleep and tell you what, if some other time you want to continue this, then we can, but not like this." He smiled softly, encouragingly, hoping Harper would understand.

Harper looked up at Tyr, uncomprehending. He knew Tyr was aroused and Harper was offering him what he wanted, and he wasn't going to take it? Even if Harper was vulnerable, the Nietzschean should be taking what he wanted from him. He tried again, his hand sliding down to rub against Tyr and he felt him respond, but once again Tyr grabbed both his hands by the wrists, gentle so as not to hurt them. Harper expected him to be mad, but Tyr was still giving him that calm look. Suddenly it clicked in Harper's head that the bigger man could easily be using him right now, but cared enough about him not to take advantage of him.

Tyr restrained the urge to throw the boy over the crates near by and have his way with him, it wasn't what the boy needed, and would probably seriously hurt him. He looked up at him and suddenly Tyr felt a change from the kid. He looked into his eyes and was surprised to see that the bright blue eyes were totally focused now and he no longer had the scent of desperation coming off of him. Even the fear was almost gone, leaving only lust.

He gave a half grin, "Welcome back."


	3. Harper and Tyr

Harper tilted his head at the bigger man, who gave him space to make the first move. He pressed his lips to his, rising up to his tiptoes to do so.

Tyr could feel the boy quickly getting more enthusiastic, pressing against him, practically trying to crawl up his body. He loosely wrapped one hand around the boy and pulled him close as he tried to get his legs around Tyr's waist. With an inaudible sigh Tyr pushed back, holding the boy at arm's length.

"You smell like Devon, boy. Come on to my quarters, we'll get you cleaned up." It was true, the boy smelled of Devon and of the fear and desperation that clung to his clothes. He followed Tyr wordlessly, but once they reached Tyr's quarter, suddenly he was nervous. He hesitated in the doorway and watched as Tyr leaned against the wall, waiting for him to make his decision. He edged into the room, jumping as the door slid shut behind him.

Tyr glanced slightly up, "Privacy engaged." There was suddenly fear coming off of the boy, even though by the way he held his body visually you wouldn't be able to tell. Tyr silently cursed; the boy wasn't as recovered as he had thought. He put out a hand and smoothly grasped Harper's shirt and pulled him gently towards him. He pulled them both into the bathroom and watched Harper, waiting for him to make a move.

He gave him a smile as he pulled off his shirt, "You going to join me?"

Tyr laughed lightly and mimicked the boy's movements, pulling off his own shirt. For a couple weeks Tyr had noticed that Harper's pheromones were going crazy when he was around him, and Tyr was more than happy to swing both ways, but every time the boy became attracted he usually also got scared and would make an excuse, getting away as quick as possible. It had just lately been a waiting game of when the boy would act on his feelings.

Harper reached for his pants, but hesitated. He looked up at Tyr, awed by the solid muscle he saw and suddenly he felt self-conscious. He had nothing to be ashamed of but he wasn't nearly as muscular as Tyr. Before he could stop the motion he felt himself crossing his arms over his chest.

The feelings coming off of Harper were unmistakable, especially since they appeared almost the exact moment he looked at Tyr. He moved quickly, grabbing Harper by the upper arms and pressing him against the wall as he pressed their lips together. After a few moments he pulled back, enjoying the sound of Harper panting. "Harper, you are gorgeous."

Harper frowned up at Tyr, anger filling his words at the slight condescending tone. Anger can easily and quickly transform to sexual energy, nervousness on the other hand could not. "I'm not some girl that you have to sweet talk in to bed Tyr."  
"I wasn't sweet talking you, if you weren't gorgeous why would Devon have gone after you?"

Tyr didn't have to struggle to hold on to Harper despite the sudden squirming that he was doing to get out of the grasp. He finally looked up at Tyr, "Cause I'm small and helpless and obviously can't defend myself at all."

Tyr tilted his head slightly, the boy wasn't trying to be modest, that's what he honestly thought. Harper still had his shirt in his hand and he tried to pull it on but Tyr stopped him. The sudden fear off of Harper forced Tyr to reassure him and get to the point of his little game. He held him still while he leaned forward pressing his lips against Harper's shoulder and slowly began to lick and kiss the flesh up the side of his neck while whispering words. "No, it's because of your ice blue eyes, and your soft blond hair and your pretty skin." He bit down softly on Harper's earlobe, noting that the fear diminished.

With a smirk that Harper couldn't see he gently slid his tongue around Harper's data port. The response was instantaneous. A yelp that quickly turned into a whimper came from him as his knees buckled. He grasped on to Tyr, having him hold his weight.

The arm around him held him up securely as he tried to get his legs to work again, if only his data port wasn't so damn sensitive. He heard Tyr's soft chuckle, "Gorgeous."

He really was, Tyr thought as he looked down at the flushed panting human in his arms. The boy looked up at him hopefully, "Alright, I think I'm okay now, shower?"

"Sure." Tyr caught his lips in a searing kiss as he unbuttoned his and Harper's pants while he kicked off his boots. Harper let him take the lead, unsure of what he was and wasn't allowed to do. As soon as they were both naked he found himself once again against the wall with hands under his thighs pulling him up. He wrapped his legs around Tyr's waist and was only vaguely aware of the sounds he was making.

Tyr on the other hand loved the sounds. The ever-cocky engineer was like putty in his hands, molded to him perfectly and currently making little needy moaning and whimpering sounds that traveled straight to southern regions on Tyr. He didn't know how he had overlooked the boy for so long, he was magnificent.

He moved and sat the boy down onto the counter, ignoring the whimper at the loss of contact as he turned the shower on. Once the water was at a temperature that would suit the human he picked him up again. He moved them both into the hot water and gently kissed him. When he pulled back he quickly spun Harper around so that he had his back to him and he instantly felt Harper tense.

In Harper's head he immediately flashed back to being shoved against the wall by Devon and he barely suppressed a whimper. Tyr's arms slid around him and again there was that powerful tongue at his data port making him shiver and then there was a soothing hush from Tyr before he felt soap on his skin. He relaxed, realizing that Tyr wasn't going to hurt him.

Tyr smiled at the boy relaxing and he gently washed the smaller human. He spun him around again after he washed his back and ran his hands through the wet hair. He finally slid his hands down, gently stroking Harper's erection.

Harper keened in need as he was backed into the wall under the hot water. He tried to thrust into the grip but Tyr's other hand held his hip, immobilizing him. The touches were light and in Harper's mind they were an example of Tyr's dominance and he did what he had in the past, he submitted.

Tyr looked into the boy's eyes and was surprised to see submission there. Not that he didn't like to be in control and exercise that control, but he didn't want to see Harper as a submissive, part of what made him so damn attractive was his fire and cockiness. Harper's quiet words pulled him back to reality.

"Where do you want me?"

He tilted his head and suddenly he understood why the boy probably reacted like that. He continued to gently stroke the jutting erection even as his other hand moved to cup the back of Harper's head. "You've had sex with a Nietzschean before?"

Harper's chin jerked up and the pain in his eyes was there for a second before it was gone covered with a cocky grin that replaced it so fast Tyr knew the smile was a cover. "Of course. Who could resist the Harper?"

Tyr tightened the hold slightly and sped his hand up, causing Harper to gasp and tilt his head back, eyes closing. He suddenly stopped moving and Harper whimpered, "Voluntarily?"

Harper looked at him, dazed, "Huh?"

"Have you ever had sex with a Nietzschean voluntarily?"

Harper looked away, the grin slipping, "Not so much, no."

That's what Tyr had thought. He moved forward, catching Harper's mouth gently, running his tongue along his bottom lip. He pulled back slightly and spoke, "Do you want this?"

"What? Yes."

Tyr wanted to make sure Harper realized that he wasn't the same as them. "If you want this to stop it will, no questions."

Harper nodded, "I want this." Tyr covered his mouth again, this time being a bit more rough, demanding entrance to Harper's mouth. He easily gave it to him. Tyr moved his hand quickly over Harper's erection and batted away Harper's hand when he tried to return the touch.

"Just go along for the ride." He wrapped his other hand around his own hardness and pressed his lips to Harper's as he jerked them both off. Harper panted into Tyr's mouth as he thrust against the larger man's grip. He felt his entire body tighten and pulled his mouth away to cry out as he came. He felt Tyr shudder and knew that he had as well.

He didn't know if he had the energy to hold himself up, but luckily Tyr's arm had tightened around him, taking the weight.

Tyr rested his forehead on the soft hair of the blond in his arms. The boy still gasped for breath, trying to calm himself. Tyr gently held the boy as he cleaned them both off. He lifted the boy up and he tiredly wrapped his legs around Tyr's waist and he laid his head down on the shoulder. Tyr smiled; he forgot sometimes just how fragile the boy was. He moved his hand to Harper's hair and gripped it, tilting his head back ignoring the annoyed sound from Harper. He waited till he had eye contact.

"What you did with those other Nietzscheans wasn't sex Harper, it was rape, don't confuse the two." He lightly stroked his hair and kissed him gently.

He brought him into the main room and set him down before drying him off with the towel. He went back into the bathroom to get their clothes and came back out to find Harper awkwardly standing there blushing and he was amused to see that the blush covered him from head to toe. Harper reached for his clothes and Tyr teasingly pulled them out of reach.

Harper scowled, "What? Should I go back to my room naked?"

Tyr smiled, "Why are you going anywhere?"

The look on Harper's face was almost comical. "You- I mean you want me to- I mean we already-" suddenly his face clouded over slightly, "You wanted to do more? Ya know- do that to me-"

Tyr moved closer and pulled Harper to him. "Yes I want you to stay and no, not to fuck you." Harper tensed and blushed at the word, surprising Tyr farther. "I just want you to sleep here, just hold you, no ulterior motive."

Harper kept his head down and brushed angrily at the tears forming. No one had ever wanted to just hold him before. He had been so sure that Tyr was going to just take control and he was sure he was going to end up with a dick up his ass, maybe a quick jerking off and then a 'so long, see you later.' He hadn't expected this and it made him get emotional.

For a moment Tyr worried that Harper was regretting this or that somehow he had inadvertently hurt him. "Harper?"

He looked up at him, his face tear streaked, "Why?"

Understanding flooded Tyr as he held the boy close, "Because I care about you Harper, I have for awhile, do you want to lay down?" He gently pushed him towards the bed when he nodded.

He lay down and pulled him tight against him, his blond head resting on Tyr's muscular chest. He gently stroked the boy's back until he felt his breathing even out and knew that he was asleep. He examined his face; the boy was never still long enough when he was awake to really look. Tyr smiled slightly as he looked at Harper and then followed him into sleep.


	4. Morning After

Harper stretched as he woke up and started in surprise when he realized he was alone. For a moment he felt something akin to pain before scolding himself on thinking that what happened last night had actually meant something to Tyr. He threw the blankets off of himself and picked up his clothes, pulling them on with jerky motions. As soon as he was dressed he took off out of the room, feeling embarrassed and betrayed.

Ten minutes later Tyr walked into his room, only to find it empty. He looked around confused; he had been called to the deck but had hurried back as soon as he could, hoping to wake up Harper with soft words and hopefully a little more. He had not expected the boy to be gone. For a moment he was angry that the boy had just up and left and then he realized what it must have seemed like to Harper. He had woken up alone after an incredibly emotional occurrence the night before. Tyr turned to go find him but was once again called to the command deck. He sighed and headed that way, making a note to find Harper as soon as he could.

Harper headed to the machine shop but on the way realized he didn't have any Sparky Cola and could really use one. He walked into the room where they kept them and found himself face to face with Devon. He immediately backed up, barely restraining the urge to call for Rommie. He didn't need her; Tyr had promised him that he would be safe. He had also told him that he cared though, and yet he had woken up alone.

Devon smirked at him and took a small step forward and then another, slowly backing Harper against the wall. Harper was having trouble trying to keep his cool, but he was confident that Devon wouldn't do anything to him, not after what Tyr had threatened. When his back hit the wall he abruptly straightened his shoulders, ignoring Devon's laugh.

Devon settled a hand against the wall on each side of Harper, but was careful not to touch him. He looked down at the bite on the side of Harper's neck and he tilted his head. "I should have known, you smell like his. All that talk about not on this ship and really he just didn't want me to touch his fucktoy. Should have known. Everything about you practically screams 'use me.'"

Rage suddenly sizzled in Harper and he shoved against Devon with surprising strength, making the other stumble back at the suddenness. "I am no one's toy, especially not an _Uber's_."

Devon snarled and stepped forward but Harper held his ground, brandishing his nanowelder as a weapon. It wasn't a standard weapon, but it would be effective and painful if used right, and he was The Harper, so he knew exactly how to use it. Devon growled and half lunged and Harper moved quickly, managing to catch Devon across the arm with the nanowelder. He grinned the blood that appeared, not much, it was barely a flesh wound.

Devon hissed and lunged again and received almost the same response. Suddenly Devon half smiled and nodded at Harper, "All right kludge, you aren't anyone's toy, but even you didn't argue that you were _his._" He stepped back indicated their surroundings, "And this, this will not happen again." He put up his hands to stop whatever Harper was going to say, "I know your place here, you are the ship's engineer and you are able to hold your own. I can and will respect that." With that he turned and headed out.

The adrenaline ran out quickly after Devon left and Harper slumped to the ground, amazed at what he had just done, he had not only stood up to a Niet, but also earned the respect of one. He smiled, what could he say, The Harper is good.

The door slid shut behind Devon and he found himself face to face with Tyr, who growled and shoved him against the wall. "What did I tell you?"

"I didn't touch your human."

Tyr knew that, he had watched the little performance and was oddly pleased at the aggressiveness that Harper had shown. "I know exactly what you did."

"I didn't break your rules and besides, your pet managed quite well for himself." He indicated his still bleeding arm.

"He did." He nodded before letting Devon go, "Go to med and get that looked at, and Devon?" He waited till the smaller Niet looked at him, "you better have meant what you said."

Devon gave him a grin that was a teenage trademark across the galaxy regardless of species before heading to the med deck. He watched him go, not willing to drop all his suspicions, but then headed into the room, looking for Harper.

Harper looked up from his place on the floor as Tyr walked in and he found the energy to pull himself to his feet. "Tyr."

Tyr frowned, the boy's voice was cold and detached and when he reached for him he pulled away. He tried again and this time Harper allowed him to grab his wrist and pull him towards him. "You dealt well with Devon. You are stronger than you think."

Harper looked up at him and for once Tyr noted that the boy wasn't scared, "Yeah well, maybe I'm stronger than you think as well." He glared at Tyr, daring him to deny it.

"I don't doubt it." With that he pulled Harper closer and kissed him, wrapping strong arms around him.

Harper broke the kiss much sooner than Tyr wanted to. He sighed, "You can't screw around like this with me Tyr, I- I'm not a toy, I was before and I won't do it again."

"So I heard," Harper frowned and he quickly continued, "I don't expect you to be, I don't _want_ you to be a toy." He took a deep breath, after all he was a Nietzschean and they did not get nervous, "I do want _something_ with you though Seamus."

Harper blushed a deep red and looked away from Tyr's probing eyes. The statement had left him speechless. He was overwhelmed and the next thing he knew he was running, ignoring the calls from the Nietzschean. What had he done?


	5. Promises

"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" He paced his room angrily, kicking himself. He didn't know what he was angrier about through – that any of it had happened or that he had panicked and ran. Somehow it had seemed easier if it had only been physical – he was used to being used for sex by a Nietzschean, but that Tyr cared, that was new. He sat down with a sigh, "you stupid, stupid kludge."

Andromeda appeared in front of him, "Harper, are you okay?"

He frowned, "Yea – did you need something?"

"I thought you might like to know that Tyr is on his way to your room."

He cringed, he wanted to just lock his door and ignore him but he had a feeling that the Nietzschean wouldn't give up that easily. "Does he seem angry?"

She glanced away for a second then back, "He appears upset."

"Thanks Rommie, when I let him in I want privacy mode."

She frowned, " Are you sure that's safe Harper?"

He nodded, "Yea, It might not be a warm conversation but he won't hurt me."

"If you say so Harper." There was an edge in her voice that said she wasn't happy, but she disappeared. He took a deep breath and stepped forward to open the door.

Tyr was slightly startled when the door opened moments before he was going to knock on it. The little human stood there looking him straight in the eyes, but Tyr could see the trepidation behind the bravado. He spoke softly like you would to a small, scared animal. "Harper – can I come in."

He looked at him for a moment before stepping back, "Yea Tyr."

He walked in and the cluttered room instantly assaulted his senses. As a Nietzschean he liked order and this room... was not ordered. He cringed a little, "How can you live like this?"

He looked around at the scattered sparky bottles, clothes and machine parts and shrugged, "I just do."

"But – it's a disaster."

Harper had been dismissive of the comments but frowned at that, "Did you come here to discuss my living arrangement Tyr?"

"No – it's just that –" He stopped at the look on Harper's face, "No, that's not why I'm here." He waved vaguely in the air, "Can you engage privacy mode?"

He nodded, "It already is."

Tyr reached out for Harper and he flinched a little but he let Tyr pull him forward till they were close enough to touch, looking up at him with anxious blue eyes. He ran one hand through Harper's hair so his head tilted up, "You shouldn't be afraid of me Harper."

He kept the eye contact but it was hard, being so close to the bigger male made him want to cuddle up against him, to just give in. But that was his old instincts coming up; he forcefully had to remind himself that Tyr was not them. He spoke, his voice holding the slightest hesitation, "It's not that I'm afraid of you so much as... I don't know what to expect from you Tyr."

He cupped the smaller human's face gently, his thumb stroking along Harper's cheek, "I'm not gonna hurt you Harper. I'm not going to _use_ you."

He reached up to cover Tyr's hand with his own, "You're making a lot of promises with that, ya know." He finally shifted his eyes away from Tyr, his voice low, "promises that I don't know how to trust."

He smiled, it may have not been a complete acquiesces, but Harper hadn't pulled away from him either. He leaned down until his lips were almost touching Harper's; his breathe tickling his lips, "Well Seamus, how about we learn together?" He caught his mouth in a kiss that managed to be both possessive and gentle. He moved them back a step as he lifted Harper up, holding the smaller body against his. He went to set him down on the bed, belatedly realizing that it was covered in machine parts. He pulled away from the kiss, making an annoyed sound. "I don't understand all this clutter!"

Harper glanced at the bed and smiled, baffled by how he could ever think that he would confuse the man standing in front of him with those Nietzschean bastards. He pressed a quick kiss to Tyr's lips and spoke, an edge of humor in his voice, "Maybe we'll have to work on this at your place..." And maybe, Harper thought as he was nearly dragged out of the room, maybe he could bring himself to trust the promises because he wasn't making them with just some _Nietzschean_, he was making them with Tyr.


End file.
